


Worded Wishes

by chaitea



Category: Original Work
Genre: Djinni & Genies, F/M, Macro/Micro, Mythical Beings & Creatures, Shrinking, Size Difference, Wishes, ohmygodheissuchashit
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-08
Updated: 2016-04-28
Packaged: 2018-05-12 12:43:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 16,313
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5666518
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/chaitea/pseuds/chaitea
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The wording of a wish is a very important when it comes to getting what it is you are actually wishing for. Especially for Amanee, a young woman that's been trying to get by as best she can with how little she has left.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Bottle Blunders

**Author's Note:**

> This story has been teasing my subconscious for some time now. I'd like to thank the brilliant and talented Neogeo20039905 (on deviant art) for helping to get it out of my head. Also for providing such amazing art to accompany the story. 
> 
> The full colored image in it's glory can be enjoyed here:  
> http://neogeo20039905.deviantart.com/art/Worded-Wishes-Cover-583049150

_Hundreds of years_ , Raghbat thought. It'd been that long since he felt this much movement from outside his enchanted bottle. An accursed prison he had been forcefully contained within after committing a very, very minor transgression.

_That’s what you get for trusting a mortal…_

The last time he truly had reason to wake up was when he had been released to grant the three wishes required of him. No such luck this time, just someone disturbing his bottle yet again. It was probably the same person, too. Teasing him by knocking into the seemingly innocuous container on some dusty shelf. And of course, the bottle would be forgotten afterwards.

Everything suddenly jolted. Yup, this was definitely free-fall. _The klutz! That’s the third time this week!_

Amanee barely managed to catch the opaque green bottle as it tumbled off the shelf above her. A cloud of dust billowed overhead from where she’d been cleaning, settling on her veiled head and shoulders.

The Djinn groaned. He’d tried in the past to get someone’s, anyone's attention, but it always failed. No one ever heard him, of course - the magic of the bottle wouldn’t allow him to send his thoughts past the barrier of glass and stone. On occasion, he had been able to manipulate the bottle but the exertion required was taxing and often left him terrible drained. _Would you just rub me already,_ he screamed uselessly in his mind. _It’s even dirty now, coated in dried dead human fleshy bits. You have no excuse not to!_

The young woman clutched the seemingly empty glass container tightly to her chest with a shaky sigh. Thankfully, she hadn’t broken it. _At least not yet..._

Amanee held onto it a few moments longer while frowning down at the damn thing. It was a pretty enough decorative piece, an elegant bottle with a long neck and wide, round base. Gold rings circled the length of it horizontally, their sizes tapering off all the way to the top of the bottle where a carved stopper rested within the opening. It was so tight that it refused to budge, which made the bottle impossible to open. _Such a shame_ , she thought. _The glassware would have made a lovely vase._

 _At least the view wasn’t so bad,_ Raghbat sighed internally. _This human is rather chesty enough to nestle in, even if all the best parts are covered up._

It was the third time she dropped this bauble while reorganizing the shelves. She was lucky she still kept her job with how clumsy she had been lately! Oddly, it was only when she handled this particular piece of merchandise that this happened. The accursed thing practically had a mind of its own!

Nothing else had given her this much trouble. She was almost tempted to buy it so she could break it at home without worrying about upsetting her manager. Not that she could waste the income. _A girl’s gotta eat_ , she mused to herself. Amanee too often felt she didn’t have enough to pay for that need already.

“What do you think you’re doing?” An amused voice chuckled behind her. There the antique store manager stood, dust settling over his well shined black boots from where the last wisps still drifted through the air. “That’s the third time this week!”

“I-I’m so sorry sir!” she stuttered out, green glass still clutched tightly against her. She cringed at the knowledge that he had been keeping track of her blunders, too. “I’ll clean this right up right away, sir.”

He sighed, and a small smile played around his bristly, bearded lips. He was a stout man with an even darker complexion than hers and a kind face. He was wearing loose navy slacks with a pale yellow polo shirt that pulled tauntly over his belly. It was a fitting professional counter to his preferred wardrobe of loose blue jeans and a Chicago sports team jersey. Surprisingly, wearing them in Newark, New Jersey never got him in trouble with local team fanatics. “Calm down, Amanee, it’s fine. Nothing's broken - yet, but be more careful, girl. I’d hate to see you break something of value. Not that this dusty old piece of filth counts.”

 _Hey!_ Raghbat growled. He’d scowl, if he actually had lips. It may be a prison, but it was HIS prison.

Amanee nodded, purple patterned hijab falling askew about her face before she instinctively reached up one hand to pull it back. “I just want to be helpful, after the trouble I’ve caused. W-what would you like me to do?”

“Just give it a good cleaning,“ the manager smiled. “Better yet, take it into the back room and put it in storage. This bothersome thing is never going to sell. It’s...” he peered at the bottle. “Ugh, what an ugly shade of green.”

 _No… no… NO!_ Raghbat pleaded. _Please! Not that!_

Amanee frowned, dark brows furrowing in disagreement. “I’m not sure… as troublesome as it always seems to be, especially about staying put, I can’t say it’s ugly.” She lifted it up now, closer to her face. “I like that it has almost that… that frosted finish. Sort of like sea glass,” she mused. “Beautiful, in a simple sort of way.”

Raghbat startled at the face that suddenly peered down at his bottle, much closer than she’s ever been before. Bright, amber brown eyes gazed into his prison. Her thick brows where nearly black and lifted in such a way to give her an openly appreciative expression. Pursed so, her lips still appeared full and shapely and her voice did sound genuinely gentle. Her hair was hidden beneath a delicate looking wrap that knotted intricately at her neck. Below that she wore layers of modest modern garb that not only masked cleavage but even the hint of a collarbone as well. A dark brown cloth draped over her shoulders to tightly wrap around each arm. Beneath was a lighter purple garment that hung loosely from her frame. Had the Djinn not been so nestled into her chest he would not have been able to tell just how comfortably ample it really was. _Huh,_ he mused. _The little mouse might not be so bad after all…_

“Well, if you like it, you can have it. It’s been with the shop for as long as I can remember, and no one has ever even asked about a price. Besides, you’ll probably end up breaking it anyway,” the manager added with hearty chuckle.

 _No, no… NO! That’s even WORSE!_ Raghbat snarled.

Amanee flinched at her manager’s uncomfortably true statement. “Thank you, sir,” she mumbled. “Um,” she paused hesitantly, “this wouldn’t come out of my paycheck... would it?”

“Hmmh,” the manager hummed. “Well, how much would you pay for something such as this?”

“Three cents,” she answered with a shy, hopeful smile.

 _WHAT!?!_ Raghbat screamed, pressing his entire being against the wall of his prison. _I AM NOT ONE OF YOUR PETTY BAUBLES! I AM DJINN!_ _I AM CHAOS INCARNATE! I HAVE SEEN THE RISE AND FALL OF YOUR PATHETIC CITIES, SEEN THE EBB AND TIDE OF TIME WASH AWAY YOUR INSIGNIFICAN-_

“Three cents, it is. Sold, to the lovely lady in silks,” the manager laughed.

 _DAMMIT,_ Raghbat roared.

A faint blush lit up Amanee’s dark complexion as she fished into her pocket for the three cents leftover from that morning's meager, street vendor breakfast.

 _THIS IS AN OUTRAGE! HOW DARE YOU! I AM PRICELESS! SULTANS HAVE GIVEN UP THEIR ENTIRE KINGDOMS FOR MY POWER!_ Raghbat swirled against the confines of the magic surrounding his nebulous form.

All the while the young woman carried her new, already dusty dust collector to the back room. Carefully, she set it at the bottom of her employee locker. “Not going to fall over in there,” she teased before closing the door.

 _I hate you…_ Raghbat fumed, as he summoned up the last of his energies and defiantly threw himself against his barrier, causing the bottle to tip over against the locker door. The effort robbed him of his senses.

Amanee still had three more hours of shelf stocking and organizing before her shift ended. It was a small relief not to worry about the bottle in the meantime. She would collect it, and the rest of her things, after finishing a Maghrib prayer before heading home. Amanee still aimed to keep with the traditions her mother had instilled in her. Even though she was no longer able to share in them anymore. The sunset prayer had been an especially meaningful daily moment between the two.

Hours passed, and he lay dormant until the flimsy metal barrier once again swung open, causing his prison to tumble right out.

Amanee let out a startled shriek of surprise as the bottle fell upon her feet. She huffed, before bending down to pick up the opaque green glass. “I didn’t think I closed my locker that hard! How do you manage to cause so much trouble when I’m not even around to tip you over?”

 _Little mouse, if I’m ever free…_ Raghbat threatened weakly, _just you wait..._

With a shrug of her scarved shoulders she tucked the trinket into her messenger bag of a purse before heading home for the night. She was thankful it was another nice day so she didn’t have to waste money on the bus. The walk was long, but she was used to it by now. No need to spend what she barely had on public transportation when her legs worked just fine.

As she rounded the last block, she reached into her bag to retrieve her keys, and once again her hand bumped into the bothersome cargo. She shook her head, shoving it aside to continue searching for her keys. “You’re nothing but trouble,” she grumbled.

 _You have no idea, little mouse,_ Raghbat wearily grumbled to himself.

After she tugged the bottle out of her bag she finally managed to retrieve the keys as she walked past a dumpster. The thought crossed her mind to just toss the bottle away. She was most likely going to break it sooner rather than later considering her luck so far. She glared at it for a few moments, before chuckling to herself and tucking it back into her bag. “You did cost me three cents. Might as well enjoy you while you’re still in one piece,” she said softly as she continued walking.

Raghbat chose not to dignify that with a response. Not that she would hear it anyway.

After climbing a quick flight of stairs and walking down a few windy hallways she was home. Shutting the door and locking it, she made her way through the kitchen to the living room, breathing a sigh of relief as she flicked on the light switch.

The floor space was limited, but at least the ceilings were quite high. It was was one of the few perks that came with living in a refurbished factory. The walls were patchwork sheetrock and plaster, with a dull coat of white paint quickly rolled over it. The floors were mostly bare cement, broken up in places where she’d laid a few rugs she’d been fortunate enough to afford over the years. The prayer rug she had inherited was kept in her closet sized bedroom that broke off near the kitchen. Thanks to these few touches, sparse decor, and a few potted plants, she’d managed to make her small living space feel comfortable. It wasn’t much, but it was home.

In the privacy of the closed off apartment, Amanee pulled off her favorite hijab. She then draped it over the couch while reaching in her bag for the bottle. “Now, let’s get a good look at you,” she murmured, as she tugged the bottle out and held it up in the light. “Just what I thought, you’re absolutely filthy!”

The opaque green tint was still mussed by the dust and grime from the shop, but the glass underneath was smooth and cold. “Let’s get you cleaned up,” she smiled, as she took her new prize to the sink and ran cool water over it, trailing the tips of her fingers over the side of the glass.

 _You’re doing it wrong,_ Raghbat critiqued while her lithe hands traced circles over his gold ringed glass. _Rubbing! You’re supposed to rub! Back and forth motions, dammit!_

As the water washed over the smooth surface Amanee noticed that the still cloudy ribbons of color seemed to swirl under her fingertips. “Huh,” she breathed admiringly before setting it down in the drying rack. She then turned to check the fridge for what she had leftover to eat for dinner.

Raghbat wailed within his magic prison. _You foolish, FOOLISH MORTAL! Do you not know what you are holding? What I can do for you?! WHAT I CAN DO TO YOU!?!_

Amanee sat down for her meal, mumbling a word of thanks over the meager amount. The small portion was heated and devoured faster then she would have liked. This left only three frozen meals for the rest of the week. She sighed unhappily; that would make just one meal a day when most people ate three. Her budget was too scarce to afford more, since the next paycheck wouldn’t deposit into her account until Friday.

“I did the right thing,” she reminded herself. Her stomach growled back at her in protest. With a heavy sigh she began washing out the now empty tupperware container. When she was finished rinsing it, she gave pause before adding it to the rack with the cloudy green bottle.

 _That’s it! I’m done! I’m never getting out of here…_ Raghbat whined miserably. _I’m going to spend all eternity being a trinket for this dense little mouse!_

She didn’t like the idea of mixing her dishware with an old dust collector, even if it was clean now. “Yeah, that’s not a good place for you,” Amanee decided aloud as she yanked the damp bottle free from the drying rack and replaced it with her clean dishes.

Raghbat groaned. _No, wait. She’s a mortal. She’ll at least be dust long before eternity._

She held it with one hand, clinging to the long, glass neck as she picked up a dish towel and began patting the bottle dry.

 _Wait, are you… you’re…_ Raghbat threw himself at the magic constraining him, his rage exploding uselessly against the barrier. _YOU’RE PATTING?! DO YOU EVEN KNOW HOW TO PROPERLY DRY A BOTTLE?!! That’s it! I give up. I resign myself to my fate. Your entire species is COMPLETELY INCOMPETENT!_

Amanee wasn’t sure if it was a trick of the light, the glass being wet, or maybe both. But it was pleasing to her eye, how the bottle caught the light. It certainly made for a pretty little effect. The glass shone and sparkled much more now than it did earlier.

“Huh, not bad. Maybe I could take up a third job as a dishwasher!” Amanee laughed to herself as she wrapped the towel around the bottle. She walked with it out of the kitchen and into her cozy sitting room. Held within the folds of the cloth, Amanee was surprised at how the bottle seemed to still glow with an unearthly shade of green. Curious, she switched on a lamp that was resting on an end table, holding the glass to her face to get a better look.

 _And completely IGNORANT! THOUSANDS OF YEARS AND YOU BARELY HAVE A GRASP OF YOUR OWN INSIGNIFICANCE!_ The Djinn vented angrily.

“That’s odd. I can swear it’s glowing,” Amanee mused. “Maybe it has something in it afterall?” She gave the bottle a shake to see if that made a difference to the way it looked in the light.

 _And… ACK! YOU DAMN MOUSE!_ Raghbat screamed. _STOP TOYING WITH ME AND EITHER SMASH IT OR RUB IT ALREADY!_

Her amber brown eyes went wide with shock and she nearly dropped the bottle, yet again, when it felt as though it jerked in her grasp. “Huh?” Amanee tightened her grip as she stared into the luminescent, green depths. The golden, ring like patterns that changed thickness throughout remained the same. But that cloudy green glow now seemed to be in the bottle instead of just part of it. The fixed stopper at the top still didn’t budge as she tried harder now to work it free.

If Raghbat had hands, his face would have been buried in them. _It doesn’t work that way, you little mouse-brained IMBECILE!_

Amanee pulled at the cork until her arm hurt, finally giving up with a sigh. She absent-mindedly began to dry the glass with the towel, patting gently until she reached the curve of the base. There she set the rag down to admire how deceptively sturdy it really did look. “Well, you clean up nicely,” she giggled.

 _Oh, just shut up!_ Raghbat growled.

“Now, where should I put you? Since I can’t use you as a flower vase…” she contemplated to herself, as she absently stroked along the bottom gold band of the bottle.

 _ENOUGH! Just, just go away and...ahh… oh!_ Raghbat exclaimed. A surge of power rushed through him as the magic imprisoning him reacted.

_Oh… Oh yes, c’mon! Do that again. Rub it again!_

Amanee gave pause as her eyes settled on the perfect shelf for the green bottle. Her fingers trailed along the side and over the cool glass for a second long, thoughtful stroke.

_ONE MORE! ONE MOREEEEE!_

Amanee smiled brightly as she crossed the room, placing the bottle down on a flat, low shelf she had been using for a stack of old books. Her hand lingered for a moment along it’s base.

 _GODS, JUST LIKE A WOMAN!_ Raghbat screamed. _RUB! ME!_

“Perfect!” Amanee smiled. She admired the glow of the bottle while tracing a gold band with her thumb. She lingered for a moment, brushing along the smooth shaft once more in appreciation of the pleasant decoration.

 _No… way…_ Raghbat paused, as the magic around him faded and released it’s hold on him. _You… you actually… aha… hahaha..._

The bottle glowed brightly in front of Amanee, an aura of muted green and white light dancing inside as it shook violently upon the shelf. Startled, she cried out in alarm when the bottle fell to the floor. The stopper shot off so forcefully it made a small dent in the concrete wall. The glass spun around crazily like a top, while sparks of green and silver light spewed forth from it’s opening.

“AHAHAHAH, YES YES YESSS!” Raghbat bellowed, as his essence poured and billowed forth from the opened prison cell, slowly taking shape.

Primal energies unleashed and exploded all around Amanee as she desperately reached out to grab for the bottle, trying to stop what was pouring out into the air. All the while her ears echoed with a howling wind that seemed to shout with a bone rattling, victorious wail.

“W-hat- WHAT’S HAPPENING?!” she cried out. The bottle shook within her hands, vibrations pulsating through her skin. She finally managed to grab hold of the seemingly possessed object as the thick, green vapor filled the room around her.

“OH BY THE SUN AND MOON, YES! HAHAHAAHAH!” Raghbat cackled in triumph.

Amanee crouched down in horror as the shadows of the room coalesced into a focal point within the chaos. Furniture creaked and groaned, the couch had flipped backwards and slid across the floor, and the light from her lamp sputtered and died.

“Who’s that? WHO’S THERE?!” Amanee called out fearfully, clutching the bottle to her chest. The massive shadow unfurled above her, a silhouette of a large shape emerging from the calamity of the storm raging around her.

“Free!” the voice rang out.

Amanee felt like the entire room had grown around her as a giant form menacingly towered above. Two embers of white, hot light burst from the shadows overhead. The light fell upon the bottle in her hands, and she dimly realized it was now completely transparent without a hint of green.

“FREE!” the form bellowed again, as it suddenly leaned down. Amanee screamed as a huge, maniacally grinning face with glowing white eyes loomed over her. A darker, wispy green mane of hair that seemed almost alive writhed in the settling winds, framed against a enormous face that beamed amusedly down at her shrill cry.

  


“Hello little mouse…” Raghbat crooned, “was it good for you too?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Amanee is pronounced "Ah-mah-niy." It's derived from Arabic origins and means Wishes/Aspirations.
> 
> Raghbat's full name is Raghbat Sayiya (رغبة سيئة) which in Arabic can translate to "bad wish/desire"


	2. Wish Wording

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Here it is, this is when the thing happens. I won't say what thing, cause that would be a total spoiler. But then, the tags defiantly do that for me anyway.
> 
> The beautiful, and brilliantly fitting art in this section goes to my dear, talented friend and inspiration can be found here:  
> http://neogeo20039905.deviantart.com/art/Worded-Wishes-Chapter-2-cover-584667108?ga_submit_new=10%253A1452917400

Amanee shrank back reactively, wrapping the loose cardigan tighter around her body as she cowered before the impossible creature. Raghbat was not only massive in size but also fearsome of expression. His frame was thick and cut in a way that might have been appealing at a more manageable stature. Around his angular waist hung a dark, maroon sash. It was held closed with a circular, chrome clasp just off to the side and below where his navel should be. His chest was bare and hairless. Despite her fear, she likely would have been blushing if she had any color left in her face. A tiny squeak slipped from her trembling lips as she beheld him leering down at her imposingly.

Raghbat tilted his massive head and a loud, resounding crack echoed throughout the room. The world around Amanee shook while plaster from the walls and ceiling overhead fell about her as he stretched to his full height. With a clear look at his torso, w she was able to see an intangible form below the waist. She realized it was a formless, opaque green wisp that nebulously trickled the rest of the way out from the now clear glass bottle still clutched in her hands.

“Well, aren’t you going to say something? You brought me all this way...” Raghbat intoned.

Amanee tried, but words failed her as the existence of this creature defied her entire reality. Instead she choked out a pitchy yelp.

Then, suddenly his face was right in front of her, close enough that she could feel his cool breath and see his giant fanged smile gleaming viciously at her. “No, go ahead! Let it all out. Let’s hear that squeaky little voice again! Please, O’ wicked giant, don’t eat me! Please, have mercy!” he taunted, clasping his clawed hands together dramatically in a pleading gesture.

Amanee gulped down what would have been another useless scream as her fearful brown eyes locked with his steel gray stare. Barely in shape alone was this being in any way human. Even bending down, he still hovered above her. The formless, cloudy green wisp trailed after him like the tail of a poisonous serpent.

The only thing that stopped her from fainting in terror was her sheer determination to put as much space between herself and this terrible creature. She struggled with her fear while slowly rising on wobbly legs, all the while her eyes never leaving his. As she craned her neck to match his unwavering gaze, he followed her movement. She felt like she was a tiny mouse in front of a python who was gleefully eyeing its prey.

“Such a delightful little morsel,” Raghbat murmured, his grin widening to reveal the full extent of his voracious smile. “Aren’t you going to at least plead for your life?”

“I… uh… wh-who is… what are...” she stuttered out inanely. Still fighting to control her terror, shaky hands curled up to her face, just below her gaping mouth.

“Use your words,” Raghbat smirked wickedly, reaching out with one long finger and placing it just underneath her chin. “Ar-tic-u-late,” he taunted while bobbing her mouth open and closed. “I know you mortals love to use very large, important sounding words to make up for your…” with a lecherous leer he eyed her smaller stature up and down, “...shortcomings.”

His touch sent her heart fluttering anxiously. The sensation was too much. Amanee felt the overpowering urge to flee but the wall behind her was not cooperating, blocking her means of escape. She was hopelessly trapped by a storm in her home that she had no shelter from.

“Cornered prey, my favorite…” Raghbat grinned, licking his lips. “You smell like jasmine. Hmmm, I wonder what that tastes like?”

Amanee nearly screamed again, but she steeled herself. Like any other storm, the fastest way to make it through was straight ahead. She closed her eyes, and with an abrupt leap forward, she found the courage to run past the terrifying creature. She hurdled over the upturned couch and scurried into the kitchen.

 

 

Raghbat grinned, as she ran within inches of him. “There we go! It’s so much better when they run. Impressive leap for such a little thing!” he cackled, as he reached out with a long hand, pawing for her as if he was attempting to scoop her up.

Amanee grit her teeth and kept running. If she made it through the kitchen, she could run outside and maybe escape. She felt a flicker of hope rise in her chest, until she hit something hard and fell backwards. When she opened her eyes, she found she had crashed into the creature’s abdomen, blocking the only escape route out of the room. The contrast between his solid looking stomach and that wispy, serpentine tail was staggering.

“So this is where you prepare food?” Raghbat mused. His chin rested on one enormous hand as he looked around with a nonchalant, bored expression as he towered over her. “Fitting place for a last meal, I would suppose, am I right?”

“H-how.. how did you..?” Amanee whimpered.

“There’s nowhere to run, and you can’t hide from me,” Raghbat smiled smugly.

Amanee scrambled to her feet and nearly tripped over her own skirt while stumbling towards the flipped couch. Her next scream was caught in her throat as the realization dawned upon her that there was indeed, nowhere to run.

“No... “ she whispered, her white-knuckled grip around the clear glass bottle loosened slightly as she felt any chance of escape slip away. This fearsome creature dominated her entire world and her only hope of deliverance had been ripped from her. “N-not like this…” she sniffled.

With no other option, Amanee dropped to her knees and began to pray, the empty glass now clutched tightly between her joined hands. With eyes closed and face stern she recalled the old words her mother had taught her, and shouted them in her head, up to the heavens.

“HISSSSSSS! NO! NOT PRAYER! WHATEVER SHOULD I… oh, right.” Raghbat smiled condescendingly as he reached out and wrapped his enormous hand around her body. He felt her small frame go rigid within his hold, her eyes still stubbornly clenched shut as he held her up to his face. Amanee’s legs dangled from the bottom of his fist as she continued to clasp her hands together in front of her scrunched up face. Still trembling in fear, she continued to murmur the holy words.

 

 

Raghbat felt her entire body quiver and quake as he loomed before her, one grey cat-like pupil taking in the satisfying sight. His lips curled into a wider smile. “Alright, we’re done. You can stop praying now, little mouse.”

Amanee continued to chant until Raghbat shook her gently.

“A-AH!” she wailed.

“Stop squeaking. I told you, I’m done. Heh, I can’t remember the last time I had so much fun. But really, stop breathing so fast, your heart will burst inside your chest at this rate,” Raghbat said with a chortle. He opened up his hand, causing Amanee to fall over in his upturned hand.

Amanee landed on her rear with a soft thump. “Ooaf!” she blurted, finding herself atop the warm surface that was his massive, open palm. Her long, purple skirts were askew about her legs. She sucked in a quick, ragged breath as she patted down her body, making sure she wasn’t injured.

“See? You’re absolutely fine. No broken bones, bruises, cuts, scrapes or lacerations. Maybe a sore throat from all of the screaming,” Raghbat snickered.

“H-huh?” Amanee stammered. She blinked dazedly, as she wobbled in his hand. She gazed upwards at the looming face leaning in and smiling at her, talking pleasantly. A few moments ago, the same face was chasing her around her home, threatening to eat her. And now the creature talked to her, as if it’d all been a big game! Despite her uncertainty, Amanee felt a rush of anger as she looked up to see her tormentor smiling down.

“I could give you a good look over if you’d like, just to make sure,” Raghbat wiggled his thick eyebrows jovially.

“W-what the…! A-aren’t you trying to kill me?” She wasn’t usually so bold, but then she had never been this terrified in her life. And his tone was completely different now, replaced by something much more playful but no less menacing. She felt the irritation and indignation bubbling deep in her chest at her mistreatment.

“No,” he answered with a frown. “Since you’re obviously on the verge of fainting, and possibly doing harm to yourself, I am compelled to inform you that,” he gritted his teeth, “you are now... my new…” he released an impossibly heavy sigh, “...master.”

Upon realizing what he meant by this, the anger in her chest popped like a bubble. “Wha? I-I’m… your… wah-w-what?! Ma-ma-ma-master? Me?!”

His face contorted, his expression similar to someone who had bitten into a fresh lemon. “Yes, you. I do not wish to repeat myself m...master,” he huffed, the word rolling off his tongue acidly.

Amanee’s eyes widened as the weight of his words sunk into her adrenaline saturated brain. “So if I’m… I’m your master... that would make you my… my, my-” she mumbled, as she swayed back and forth almost drunkenly in his palm.

“Djinn,” he growled indignantly. “The word you’re looking for is Djinn. You may call me Raghbat. I don't understand, my kind haven’t been forgotten completely, have we? Or are all mortals so ignorant in this age?”

Small hands clapped together excitedly around the neck of the glass bottle as she ignored the blatant insult. “Wishes! Do I really get to have-”

“Three...” Raghbat answered before he had to listen to any more to her inane babbling.

Amanee practically squealed in delight, as he rolled his eyes. Even held aloft in his large green hand the young woman practically bounced with barely contained excitement. “Three! Three whole wishes! This is even better than winning the lottery! Haha, and I’m too poor to even play!”

She prattled on excitedly, elated by stumbling upon such good fortune. All she had to do was climb down from his palm, and figure out just exactly what she should wish for. She wiggled excitedly in Raghbat’s hand, humming and beaming with delight.

A vein on Raghbat’s forehead pulsed and he grit his teeth. Her jovial nature was starting to grate on him.

“Where do I even start? There’s so much I could do! For myself! A-and humanity, even! Wow…” she beamed, “I could really make a difference, can’t I?” She felt her heart flutter in her chest, this time in excited elation instead of fear. The floor suddenly didn’t look as far away now, but she still very much wanted to get back to it. Carefully she began to shift, scooting towards the edge of his platform-like palm, swinging her legs over the side.

 _No one ever wished for such things,_ Raghbat thought bitterly to himself. _They all entertained the idea of making wishes like that, starting out. But in time, even the purest soul would use a wish for only themselves, and usually for the pettiest of things - riches, power, to crush their foes, or…_ “Yes, yes,“ he grumbled. “About your wishes-”

“My wishes! I could wish for anything! Oh wow, oh wow, oh wow, oh-”

“Perhaps you would like-” Raghbat began suggesting.

“I could cure all disease!” Amanee exclaimed gleefully while kicking her feet as she looked over the edge to see if she was low enough to safely jump off. “World peace! I could end all wars! I could-”

“Alright, enough!” Raghbat snarled angrily, jerking his hand abruptly to his face, his eyes piercing her with an ethereal light as the entire room shook with his booming voice. “Stop jabbering like a fool!” he bellowed. “MAKE A WISH ALREADY!”

Amanee flinched inward, the sudden movement of his palm made her afraid of falling. “I-I wish you’d put me down,” she blurted out while nearly tumbling back into his curled wall of fingers. Abruptly her free hand flew up to cover her mouth just as she realised her mistake.

“THAT’S FOOLISH! MAKE A… wait…” he frowned. Surely, it wasn’t that simple. Since the dawn of time, no one in his ancient memory had ever made such a blunder in their wish. His eyes twinkled manically as his lips curled into a snake-like grin.

“N-No! I didn’t mean, wait! WAIT!”

“Master, thy humble servant hears, and obeys. By the power of the Moon, Stars, and the Heavens, I grant thee thy wish!” Raghbat smiled pleasantly as he stretched out his hand above the capsized furniture. After turning over the couch and putting it back into it’s proper place, Raghbat flicked his wrist, and Amanee landed roughly upon the worn, askew cushion. The force of the impact causing her to roll off and onto the floor, somehow managing to keep her hold on the empty bottle.

Raghbat tried to keep his face as somber as he could. “Alright, that’s one wish,” he announced.

Splayed out upon the floor, Amanee flushed, her naturally dark complexion pinkened in embarrassment as she realised the magnitude of what just happened. She’d just wasted her first wish!

The Djinn leaned forward and smiled pleasantly down at her. “Two more!”

“But… but that’s not… I didn’t even,” Amanee’s voice wavered with barely contained emotion as she stared up at the great and powerful Djinn. She sniffled slightly, shifting to all fours before rising up to her full height.

There was a moment - a brief, miniscule moment - where a small nagging doubt tugged at Raghbat while Amanee stood in front of him. Her long dark hair was hiding her face as her shoulders shook with the realization that he’d all but robbed her of a wish.

 _No. No, no no,_ Raghbat resolved himself. He grit his teeth while trying to keep the condescending smile on his face. _I will not feel sympathy for her. These mortals are all the same. This has happened_ _before,_ h e chided internally. _Remember what happened last time!_

“Ebn el metanaka!”

 _Ah-ha, there it is,_ Raghbat thought, a genuine smirk returning to his lips. _There’s her true colors. Mortals are all the same..._

More angry at herself than anything, Amanee continued to lash out at her tormentor. “You, you, you malicious, condescending, vomit-green ebn el metanaka!” Roughly she grabbed her discarded hijab from where it had fallen off the couch's armrest with her free hand. It served as a humiliating reminder that her head has been uncovered before a strange male creature this entire time.

“I was never born of a woman. And yes, green. Green is a lovely color,” he said forcefully, voice dripping with venom. “It’s the color of leaves, the grass - the color of life. One that I could have deprived you of if I’d let you go from a hundred feet in the air. Your wish was simply to be put down. You didn’t specify _how_.”

Amanee shrieked in frustration as she wound the thin, silky fabric around her head with one hand, shoulders shaking angrily as she tied it off. The demon was taunting her, having won this round, and now he was gloating!

“Hurammi,” she accused harshly.

Raghbat held his hands out, in an exasperated gesture. “I have stolen nothing from you, because I gave you exactly what you asked for, and more! I have taught you a lesson!”

“A lesson?!” Amanee exclaimed.

“Yes, a lesson. I granted your first wish according to the rules. In fact, most mortals would never receive a lesson with a mere bump, or a bruise as payment,” he snarled, as he slithered to tower directly over her once again. “Consider this a gift, to have survived a force of nature. You have two wishes left, and let me be clear - wishes are powerful, primal and elemental. They’re magic, and magic is beautiful, deadly, and fickle. Wishes especially so, for they are like the weather. They can become a pleasant spring morning or a harsh winters storm, depending upon how the butterfly flaps its wings.”

Fiercely she looked up to face him. “A force of nature… like a poisonous storm cloud,” she mused aloud distastefully.

“Something like that…” Raghbat shrugged. “But your mortals have a saying, in dealing with my kind. Be careful what you wish for… you just might get it. So be very cautious, because it’s at my discretion how your wish is fulfilled, and there are covenants that I must follow in how I grant them.”

“Covenants? What do you mean?” Amanee asked despite herself.

“There are many, but for example - I cannot bring life to the dead,” Raghbat explained, leaning over Amanee. “Lucky for you, I cannot kill, not directly.”

“Then you were lying about dropping me!” Amanee accused.

“No, but I can kill in technicality. For example, I can give you the tools you would need to defeat your enemies, but never could I outright destroy them, or you. But you could kill them, or they could kill you. Or, say you wished for an ox, and it gored you to death. I would be blameless.”

A chill crept over Amanee and she shivered, eyes widening as she stared at Raghbat.

“Do not fret. I truly do not wish to kill you,” he shrugged. “Besides, you humans seem to be able to kill each other without my help, anyways. You’re quite creative at that. It is truly one of your few impressive features as a race.”

“I, I don’t have any enemies.” Amanee glowered at him. “At least I didn’t before _you_ showed up.”

Raghbat ignored her verbal jab. “Continuing our conversation, I cannot rob another of free will. That includes making someone fall in love with you. But the most important rule, I cannot undo consequence.”

Amanee puffed out her cheeks. “So you can’t change my past? Or my family's?”

“Exactly! It would change who you are fundamentally, as a person. It would deny your free will. Your choices define you, and I cannot undo those choices. Karma, repercussions and most importantly, balance,” Raghbat tilted his head. “It’s the nature of the magic that binds me and shapes me. With any wish, where there is a boon, and thus there will always be consequences. There must always be balance,” he said, as he held up his finger. “It is not in my power, it is simply the will of the magic.”

He leaned forward, his face now unnervingly close to hers. “So if you wish to be angry at me, so be it… but you brought this storm upon yourself. Do not underestimate me, or my magic, little mouse… this is your only, and final warning.”

Amanee knew she should be afraid of this huge form that loomed above her. Instead she found herself shaking with rage at his cold, harsh words. _How dare you_ , she fumed, _after all I’ve been through! After all I lost!_

“So is that why you stole my first wish? To teach me a lesson? How cruel!”

Raghbat frowned. “Were you not listening to anything I’ve said?”

“Oh, I heard plenty! If you were really intent on teaching me, you could have used words, but no! You were too busy scaring me within an inch of my life!” She took a steadying breath, squaring her shoulders. “You may be a storm… but you’re my storm now, Raghbat,” she held up the bottle in her hand. “And I’ll direct you accordingly!”

Raghbat blinked, at her defiant tone and gesture. He wasn’t sure if he should be pleased, or annoyed at the sudden bravado. Instead, he feigned disinterest.

“Yes, yes,” he muttered, voice tired and dull. “Rawr, look at me, I can string together a coherent thought without stuttering, squeak squeak,” he mocked with a dismissive shake of his hand. “Look, I know you mortals can’t wrap your puny heads around the consequences part. I'll make this simpler so we can just get this over with,” Raghbat offered. “Think about what you need, and make a wish. If you don’t blow yourself up on that one, you can move on to the last wish and we’ll be rid of each other. And if you still feel the need to be all high and mighty and make decisions for every mortal, well then you’ll still have that one wish left. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

She considered his words with a small frown. That was an uncomfortably insightful point. How could she be expected to change the world when her own living situation was so unstable? She barely got by paying the rent, let alone managing to feed herself paycheck to paycheck. One look over to the humble kitchen was an unfortunate enough reminder of that. She was on her own these days and the bills from when she wasn’t were not paying themselves.

“Well?” Raghbat said impatiently. “You making a wish, or not?”

With a heartfelt sigh Amanee considered how to phrase her next wish. “I wish… I-I wish that...hmmm...”

Raghbat folded his arms, and leaned back as he levitated in the air above her, looking positively bored.

“I wish that I will always have more than enough food to satisfy my hunger,” she finished, content with her choice of wording.

Raghbat looked sideways at her kitchen. One bruised apple was the only edible thing he’d seen in the open since his arrival. His eyes widened. “Food is hard to come by for you?”

She nodded meekly. It was an embarrassing thing to admit aloud, especially to someone that literally looked down on her. “Yeah… yes it can be.”

He folded his arms, his brow furrowing in thought. “I could just give you all the food in the world, though that means everyone else starves.”

“No! That’s not what I’m asking,” she blurted. “I don’t want anyone to suffer from this.”

“Hmmm, I’ve never had to grant a wish like this before,” he mused with a frown.

“It’s not that hard! I-I just want to make sure that what I have will always be enough for me,” she clarified. “Is this not within your power?”

“No! It’s just… it was a rather humble wish,” he replied as he folded his arms, his brow furrowing in thought. “Hmm…”

Amanee tilted her head at Raghbat. He seemed almost... pleased?

“Yes, but how to make it so that you always have enough food, without robbing others or… oh wait… ah-ha!” Raghbat snapped his fingers. “I’ve got it, it’s simple enough, I can do that!” he exclaimed. He reached out and patted her gently on the top of her head, with one finger. “It’s just a matter of quantity, then!”

A soft green glow materialized from his large claw, flowing down and around her from where he touched her hijab. The glow brightened as it creeped along her body, and with it came a tingling sensation.

Amanee gasped and squirmed as goosebumps erupted across her skin. She felt her knees buckle suddenly. “W-wh-what are you doing?!” she demanded.

“I’m fixing your problem! Now, hold still,” Raghbat instructed.

Amanee opened her mouth to protest, but as she looked up at Raghbat, her hijab drooped over her eyes, veiling her face even more. She reached up to brush it back only to find the sleeve of her cardigan was now hanging well over her hand. She frowned, biting her bottom lip as she stretched out her hand, trying to settle her sleeve back into place. And that’s when she realized that her cardigan wasn’t just stretched out... her arm was shorter!

She cried out in alarm as her clothing grew around her, the sensation of slipping down into her shoes tickled her feet while they disappeared into the open-toed sandals laced around her ankles. The fabric of her skirt, now much longer than her legs, began pooling on the floor where she stood. The feeling of her belt slipping off her hips caused her to drop the glass bottle in alarm.

"W-wait! No! This isn't what I-RRRAGGGBBbbbaaattt..t.tttttt," she wailed, trying to keep her clothing from sliding off her rapidly diminishing form.

“Going down,” Raghbat cheerfully decreed.

Her stuttering protests became higher and higher pitched as she continued to dwindle down into the now oversized clothes. She shivered as her shirt slowly opened up around her, the collar falling away from one shoulder and then the other. Her simple, white bra hung awkwardly until it too slid off, now holding open the front half of shirt on the floor. She felt as if she were disappearing into a giant, fabric framed crater of cloth.

She could only whimper while the modest outfit slipped away from her hidden curves, the skirt falling from her waist as the cardigan billowed around her shoulders like a falling tent. The frightened woman stepped back and one tiny foot slid out from her sandal, nearly tripping as her other foot slipped free. Her mouth hung open as they seemed to grow right in front of her, until she found herself standing between the massive footwear, bare feet squirming amidst the cotton fabric of her undergarment.

  


 

The purple patterned hijab no longer covered Amanee’s head, but her entire body. It fluttered until it draped over her completely, more like a tent instead of a veil. She could only huddle beneath it, too stunned for words as her body shivered until the tingling sensation finally subsided.

Raghbat peered down at her tiny form, a smile pulling at lips. “See, isn’t this a much more convenient size? That apple over there could feed you for a week. Maybe even a month!”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Arabic Translations:
> 
> Ebn el metanaka - Literally translates to "son of a dirty one". Aka, Son of a bitch
> 
> Hurammi - Thief


	3. Freedom Farce

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter has been written, edited, and then re-edited again plus a few times after that. Now I think I'm finally ready to share. I also cut off about 4 additional pages at the end that will go into the next and last installment of this story. 
> 
> Also, there is a close up, full colored version of the last image here:  
> http://neogeo20039905.deviantart.com/art/Worded-Wishes-Chapter-3-Cover-595313514

Amanee stared down in disbelief at her hands, reeling at the absurdly unbelievable change in perspective.

“See, isn’t this a much more convenient size?” Raghbat asked. His voice somehow seemed much louder and farther away at the same time, like a crashing avalanche. “That apple over there could feed you for a week. Maybe even a month!”

At the Djinn’s announcement, Amanee finally gathered her wits to fully take in the new surroundings. The massive folds blocked her view from outside the clothy cavern she was entangled within. She felt herself being lost in a sea of purple.

She should have been afraid, but instead she began to scream and curse as best her tiny lungs would allow. Furious, she was determined to express her indignation and rage at how the mischievous creature had robbed her yet again. But this time instead of just a wish, he stole her entire life away. This size was no way for her to live!

“Huh? What’s wrong now?” Raghbat asked as Amanee’s voice peeped and shrilled at him from the far away floor. “Isn’t this is what you wanted? You don’t have to worry about food now, you’ll have plenty no matter what. That’s good, right?” Raghbat grumbled, as he reached down with one giant hand to scoop up the tangled pile of hijab and panties she was hidden within. The rest of her discarded clothing was left in an unceremonious heap upon the floor.

Amanee squealed from within her confines, struggling as his grip pressed the cloth closer around her. Trying to right herself was difficult enough without her stomach flip-flopping, the queasy sensation brought on by an abrupt change in elevation. She fought with the twisting fabric, trying desperately to reorient herself as she squirmed out from underneath it. She fumed, fighting to find her footing so she could get back to yelling at Raghbat.

She wasn’t prepared for what greeted her outside the cotton confines as an indignant squeak died upon her lips. Amanee found herself looking up into a giant grey eye that loomed in front of her like a slit of pure, dark night. She gasped as a cold chill crept down her spine while she huddled in the hajib atop her underwear. Staring into the black abyss she felt her courage drain away. Shrieking in fear, she fell to her knees and clumsily darted back into the folds to hide.

Raghbat frowned, moving his cupped hands closer for a better look. “Seriously? What are you hiding for?” the Djinn inquired, perplexed. “You still have one more wish.”

She shouted something incomprehensible and Raghbat’s dark brows furrowed as he reached down and took hold of her scarf with his giant, pinched fingers. He pulled away the silken folds, trying to stifle a laugh as her little form tumbled out. Letting the hijab fall away, he had to squint to see her, a tiny olive-brown speck lying in the palm of his enormous hand. The only thing separating them now was a green article of clothing that she seemed to be tangled in.

Amanee struggled against the elastic band of her parachute sized panties, disoriented from the overwhelming size difference of everything around her. The exhale of Raghbat’s breath felt like a wind, flowing over her nakedness, causing her to shiver as her skin broke out in goosebumps.

Still dazed, she groaned as she pulled herself up and leaned back. Another wisp of his breath flowed over her bare skin, causing her to look down. Her chest was completely bare! Amanee squeaked as she abruptly clamped her hands over her breasts, yelping out in embarrassment. She scrambled to cover herself, pulling her undergarments against her tiny body to defend her modesty. It was so surreal to be at this new diminutive size, let alone being this exposed before someone else! She had always been against wearing shamefully revealing lingerie. At least it had turned out to be a blessing in disguise, since now there was more than enough fabric to cover herself with.

“There’s really no need for modesty,” he commented blandly. “You don’t see me complaining and hiding behind my belted sash. Though I do like your current ensemble. Green... like the color of my skin,” he added with a playful wink.

Amanee shrieked in both embarrassment and protest, stomping the heel of her little foot against his palm. She then leaned up on her toes, shaking her fist at him, as though any amount of height she could get back might make a difference at this point.

“Huh?” Raghbat asked, tilting his head to angle one of his pointed ears at her. “Speak up, I can barely hear you.”

“I SAID,” Amanee shouted, “Ya Kalb!” Frustrated, the miniscule woman cried out in anger as she ineffectively grinding her foot into Raghbat’s palm.

He was still unable to make out her shrill little voice or even see what she was attempting to do. The Djinn’s deep resounding tones growled in annoyance. “Oi, I can’t understand you. This won’t do,” he muttered. “One moment…”

Raghbat let out a windy huff as he began to adjust his own size, reducing his colossal form so he could better hear the tiny bundle of rage in his cupped hands. _The things I do for my masters…_

As she appeared to grow in his hands, Amanee stumbled, trying to clutch at the only piece of clothing around her in an effort to maintain what little modesty she had left. The disorienting sensation of his shifting skin beneath her caused the woman to lose her grip, briefly exposing herself again as she fell backwards into his palm.

 

 

“There, that’s bett-” Raghbat’s voice stammered to an abrupt halt. Glaring back at him was no longer a simple speck, but a curvy figure. Long before he was imprisoned within his glass lamp, he had seen many beauties. Even a few thereafter from time to long stretch of time. Though only when he was fortunate enough to be periodically released from the bottle.

Perhaps he hadn’t noticed because of the bland clothing she’d worn before, but Amanee’s flowing, near black locks and rich complexion were enough to give him pause - even while her face was twisted in discomfort and rage.

She was truly beautiful. “Oh,” he blurted out inarticulately.

“WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO ME!” she shouted, struggling beneath her panties to get back into a standing position.

“As I already told you, I made you small enough so that what you have to eat will always be enough,” Raghbat reaffirmed. He found it quite challenging to be any more clear, what with Amanee’s bare curves teasingly hiding behind the thin, green fabric.

“Look at me! Look what you did! Y-You SHRUNK ME!” she shrieked, her tiny cry warbled off into an alarming wail as she fell to her knees again, messy hair falling over her face.

“Yes. We have established this three times now,” Raghbat rumbled back like an impending thunderstorm. “Why are you so upset? I only gave you EXACTLY what you wanted.”

“Ebn el metanaka!” she cried, running her hands through her hair and then pulling at it in panicked frustration. “WHY AM I SO UPSET!?! How am I going to work? How am I going to feed myself?! I can’t even reach the door to go outside! I CAN’T REACH ANYTHING!”

The Djinn looked around her home, understanding part of the problem now. “Hmmm, surely there are smaller dwellings you can live in?”

Amanee moaned, hands falling into her lap. They were useless. She was useless. She felt almost as helpless now then on the day her mother died and younger brother left. “You… you have no idea what you’ve done...” she stammered. “M-My life… it’s, it’s over!”

“What are you babbling about? I fulfilled your wish! TWO OF THEM!” Raghbat snarled with a flash of lightning in his eyes. “You worded the wishes, I only granted them! WHY ARE YOU HUMANS NEVER SATISFIED!”

The sheer volatile might of his voice caused Amanee to curl up into a ball within his cupped hands. She felt the weight of this new, tremendous world cave in all around her. The threat of tears stung as she sniffled.

What has she done to deserve this? Why did everything she did to better herself always seem to ruin what little she already had? No matter how hard she tried, no matter how much work and effort she put in, it always ended up this way. Her entire world shattered yet again. And now, here was the avatar of her misfortune and hardship looming above her, like a snake ready to strike. His suffocating presence reminded her of just how futile it had been to hope that this could have turned out any differently.

Her brown eyes puddled in muddy pools as she realised the great loss she brought upon herself. She covered her face with her hands, trembling in grief and frustration.

Raghbat gazed upon her tiny form as she curled up in a fetal position in his palms. For the second time this day he felt a pang of remorse. She was truly a sorrowful little wretch, clothed in nothing but an undergarment within his grasp. The first wish was purposefully mocking her perhaps, but with the second he truly thought he was helping her.

“Look,” he began with a low sigh. “If you really don’t like this then use your last wish to reverse it. I never meant to-”

“How could you say that!” Amanee interrupted. She shifted, pulling herself up on wobbly elbows to better glare at him through tear filled eyes. “Those wishes could have… I could have… you stole any chance I had to, to... I-I could've…” she sniffled. “You were given the power to grant wishes... and, and all you do is cast curses!” She openly weeped, thin shoulders shaking with rage and sorrow.

Her words pierced Raghbat. He hovered dumbfounded, still cradling her in his hands. He felt confused, reeling from emotions he hadn’t felt in eons. Guilt, pity, remorse. But as it has always been, bitterness overcame him.

“How dare you,” he whispered scathingly. The entire room began to shake. The long shadows lengthened all around until it seemed like master and Djinn were both caught within a dark, raging tempest.

Amanee glared right back. Her little face was flushed, making her dark hued skin beneath the steady stream of tears practically shine. Amber flecks flickered within her dark brown eyes like stubbornly smoldering embers.

“Given?” Raghbat whispered, his voice raw with emotion. He lifted her up so his nose was a mere inch from her tiny body. His eyes blazed with an unearthly light while he bared his fangs threateningly. “Me? _Given_ the power to grant wishes?” He barked out a harsh laugh. “Fool! I wasn’t _given_ anything. That bottle is my prison and I am the one who is cursed. But what would you know, little mouse? Your life is just a speck of dust in the wind, a small spark snuffed out by entropy in a whimper. And yet YOU have the audacity to criticize ME?”

The Djinn's words encircled her mind and quaked her body. _He could kill me so easily. All he has to do is leave me like this,_ she realised morosely. _But it doesn’t matter anymore,_ she resolved. _It’s not like I have anything left to lose. If fate was going to always turn against me, I will defy it to my last breath_ . _Let this monster do his worst!_

With this new resolve, Amanee balled up her fist while snarling, “SHUT UP!” She then rocked forward to land a punch on the tip of his nose.

Raghbat blinked in surprised confusion as her tiny fist ground into his green skin.

“I, uh-”

“I said SHUT UP!” Amanee stamped her foot against his palm, nearly dropping her panties in the process. But she was far too furious to care about the near slip. “I’ve had enough! I am not the one that stuffed you in that bottle. I could have even helped you if you’d told me you were a prisoner in the first place. But now I can’t do anything! You scared me, mocked me, and now you’ve all but destroyed me. This is YOUR fault, Raghbat, not mine!”

Despite her small stature the heat of her rage burning between the two of them was practically palpable. He knew she was afraid. He could smell it on her. But she held her position boldly before him. Her voice may have been higher pitched and softer but the force of her words, as well as the intensity behind them, were heavy with honesty.

She might have set him free. His eyes widened, and the angry glow dimmed as his face softened. No, she had all but said if -  if he’d asked, she actually would have.

Raghbat felt a cold chill go up his spine. Had he not assumed that all humans had been the same, he might have changed his fate. But he had steeled himself eons ago, to never allow a mortal to get the better of him again. And in doing so, he’d not only destroyed his own chance at freedom, but robbed someone who was truly noble of their own. He was no better than the one who had imprisoned him in the first place.

Of all his masters, Amanee had made the most humble wish. She had started out truly wanting to do good with the wishes he’d bestowed upon her. But, as always he had twisted her words despite her intentions.

His thick brows smoothed over as steel, grey eyes softened considerably. The suffocating presence in the room faltered and dissipated, and the shadows receded to normalcy. Raghbat blinked in confusion of the sudden wellspring of emotions bubbling in his chest. “I…” his voice faltered, still reeling with the realization. “I didn’t mean to-”

“ENOUGH!” she snarled. “Just… just go back in your bottle,” Amanee commanded with a sniffle.

“Not until you make your last wish. I owe you that much,” Raghbat frowned, fangs retracting slightly to appear less threatening and more beseeching. “How about you wish for yourself to return to normal?”

“Why, so you can trick me again?” she accused. “No way! I don’t trust you. I can’t trust you!” The young woman pulled the green fabric around her more tightly as her features scrunched into a harsh scowl. “You’re not even human! You can’t understand what I feel! How could you! You! You need to feel what it’s like to be hopeless. What it’s like to be at the mercy of someone else. To have your entire life ruined!”

“You wouldn't know the first thing about true suffering,” Raghbat replied, darkly. “You don’t have to be human to experience pain. You foolish little mouse, you don’t know anything!”

Amanee threw her hands up to cover her ears, flinching at his volume.

Raghbat mindfully lowered his tone, but kept it just as acidic as before. “You’re a child, lecturing a being that’s as old as the cosmos. What do YOU know about suffering, little mouse?” For emphasis, he brought up his free hand up to poke her with a curved claw.

Instead of stumbling back, she took hold of it, nearly dropping her cotton covering in the process. Amanee wore a determined look as she wrapped her arms around his large digit and held it challengingly.

 _Well she certainly has spirit,_ Raghbat thought begrudgingly. “Just...just make your last wish so we can be rid of each other!”

“You want my last wish? FINE! I wish… I wish for you to switch our places!” Amanee bellowed. With a tremendous effort, despite her stature, she shoved his claw away.

Raghbat’s eyes widened, and he felt the weight of her wish, and the raw emotions slam into him. “W-what?” he sputtered.

“You heard me,” she cried out. “You can’t change circumstances? Fine! So you’ll take mine, and I’ll take yours!”

The volatile force of her words summoned the very last vestiges of the magic that bound him to her. Raghbat could feel the energy within him build and swirl, merging into a reality-warping spell. He couldn’t remember the last time a wish had felt this powerful, the magic behind the wish was already compelling him to grant it. “W-what have you done?!”

“What I had to do, you reckless, legless ebn el metanaka,” Amanee answered darkly. “I’ll take my life back and you... YOU get to have NOTHING!

“It’s not that simple, you foolish mortal!” Raghbat hissed. “Do you have any idea of what you’ve done!?”

“I am holding you responsible for your actions,” Amanee snarled, trying to hold back from flinching at the might of his loud voice.

Raghbat opened his mouth to argue further but his body jerked backwards from the forces surging through him, nearly dropping her.

Through the haze of pain, Raghbat fought to keep his thoughts intact. The wish and her emotions were indeed formidable, Raghbat conceded, but still unpredictable. He had to act quickly and firmly. _I still have some control of how this is granted_ , he reminded himself while the barrage of magical intensity threatened to warp the reality around him with or without his guidance. _I will shape this wish. I will direct this as I see fit._ _But I have to think,_ he grimaced, trying to concentrate. The spell began to explode in his mind, making it difficult to concentrate. _To change places... She doesn’t know what she’s asking! She cannot take my place, she is free…human, but if I were... free like her… that’s it!_ His eyes brightened triumphantly.

Amanee was abruptly whisked from his hands by an unseen, magical energy. She let out a pitchy gasp while her panty coverings tumbled to the floor, leaving her curvy body exposed. Her arms wrapped around her just as a purple sheen enveloped her swarthy skin in a shimmering fog. The young woman’s tiny form now hovered just above the Djinn's head. The glimmer about her casting a flickering light, causing her to look like a firefly in the darkness of the room.

A more brilliant glow also crept over Raghbat’s entire body until his light green complexion shone brightly. He bit back a gasp upon being so fully enveloped in such an unusual way by his own magic, engulfed in the spells he had not been able to cast upon himself in millennia. He gazed out from the haze to meet Amanee’s dark eyes. They were two little specks of smoldering heat glaring at him from within the aura of power surrounding her.

He smirked tiredly as the magic finally began to twist out of his control, but it had been enough. He had barely managed to direct it as best he could.

Amanee gulped as she saw he was smirking. “Oh, oh no…”

Raghbat chuckled darkly. “Oh yes…”

A prickling tingle broke out across her dark skin, causing her to squeak in alarm.

“You wanted to change our places,” he began. “You wanted to force your fate upon me. But… did you consider how I could return the favor?”

“What? That’s not… no! No! NO!” Amanee wailed, as the discarded bottle flared to life on the far away floor, sputtering sparks of purple and silver.

Raghbat cheered as he suddenly felt the last tendril of magic connecting him to his former prison stretch and shatter. It was glorious! HE WAS FREE! He wanted to shout in triumph, to dance at the feeling.

Before he could gloat aloud, Amanee’s voice cried out in alarm as her body began to dissipate into wisps and ribbons of purple smoke.

He turned to meet her wide, frantic eyes. The sheer terror in them was enough to cut his triumphant croon short.

“Please… no!” she gasped, her brown eyes overflowing with tears. “I didn’t… I, I don't...please…!”

Raghbat felt a chill creep along his spine. _I know that look. That’s how I felt when…!_ The sudden intrusive recollection made him flinch. “Hey, now, you’re not-”

“Help me!” she cried, cutting him off. Her body continued to change as she hung in the air just before his face. “I’m scared!” she cried out, arms stretched towards him.

Raghbat found himself reaching out to her, not sure even why he did so. It was a futile gesture, with her arms reduced to whisps of smoke. As she tried to grab at Raghbat’s large hand, she passed right through his fingers.

“Please…” she pleaded, as the last of her physical features began to blur. In a few moments, she was nothing but a tiny nebulous cloud of purple smog, hovering in front of Raghbat’s face.

Raghbat watched with curious intent guiding his hand, confused at the emotions welling up within him. The purple mist flowed through his grasping fingers as what was left of Amanee was pulled towards the bottle, stretched out like a long curl of smoke from a glass incense burner.

“HELP MEEEEE!” she screamed. Although Amanee no longer had lips, her voice echoed around the small room in terror before waning in volume as the bottle started to claim her as its new victim. Disoriented, she had a vague notion that this must be what melting feels like. There was no pain, instead a terrible prickling coursed through her gaseous state. It was an awful, consuming itch that could never be satiated. There was no way to scratch skin that was no longer there. She felt herself reduced to a mere awareness. A consciousness with nothing physical to direct it, except for a churning vortex of ensnaring power. The bottle drew her in like a black hole with a clear glass bottom. Its narrow opening pulled at Amanee tirelessly, relentlessly devouring one vaporous strand at a time.

Raghbat was distracted from the human’s ensnarement when he felt a peculiar, heaviness weighing him down. Before he could place the peculiar sensation he jolted, nearly falling over when his body abruptly took on complete physical form for the first time since his own imprisonment. He clutched at the couch, just barely catching himself before his newly formed knees could drop to the floor. He still wore his burgundy sash, but below that his legs were unclad. With a quick thought, and a whisper of power, he materialized a billowy, gray garment to cover the long limbs.

He took a few deep breaths as he pulled himself to his feet. _FEET! I have FEET again! And, and what were those called? TOES!_ He giggled to himself. _Who cares about that mousey girl’s plight? Not I! I’m FREE! Free of the accursed bottle! Free to be my own master once again!_

“Well, that was wild!” he gleefully exclaimed. “I guess I’m finished here, so it’s time to-” As he turned to make his way out of the apartment, a bright, luminescent flash from the floor caught his attention.

“Eh?” Raghbat muttered, turning around. The entire apartment was still in shambles. The worn couch was still overturned, along with several baubles strewn about from where they had been tossed in the chaos of the magic.The bright city lights streamed through from the window to shine upon his former prison lying still upon the floor.

He took a few steps forward before hesitantly bending down to pick up the ornate container. Instead of green, it was now a lovely shade of purple with flashing pink hues. As he watched, the smoke that was once Amanee swirled in a dizzying, corkscrew pattern.

“Huh,” he breathed out consideringly. “You’re a nice look for that ugly old bottle. Purple is definitely your color, isn’t it, little mouse?”

There was no answer. Of course she couldn’t answer, the bottle wouldn’t allow it. As he continued to peer at his place of torment, a smile came to his face. “Not so scary now, are you?” he scoffed. “Hmmm, the old man was right about one thing,” Raghbat chuckled. “This troublesome thing is best left here to wind up in someone else's storage.”

_“I dunno… as troublesome as it always seems to be, especially about staying put, I can’t say it’s ugly. I like that it has almost that… that frosted finish. Sort of like sea glass…”_

Raghbat shook his head with a frown at the recollection of her inane babble earlier that day. Her voice had been laced with the sweet innocence of blissful ignorance. If only she had known her words were like a calm before an impending storm.

Raghbat grimaced. _A storm of my creation._

The invasive thought was cut short by the view of a small silhouette within the bottle pressed up against the glass wall between them.

 _Ah, the last whips of her form before the bottle robs her of that entirely_ , Raghbat mused. Placing it upon a low table he bent down to gaze inside. He could see what was left of Amanee’s tiny body, her bare bosom and forehead were pressed up against the gold ringed glass.

Raghbat studied her, at first fascinated by this development. Within the bottle, Djinn did not maintain a physical form. _But then, there has never been a human within a prison such as this,_ he mused detachedly. The thought left a bitter taste in his mouth as he peered at her closely.

Amanee’s soulful, dark brown eyes were searching about frantically, lost in the confusion of what had become of her. The magnitude of her predicament continued to overwhelm her. She frantically banged uselessly upon the glass, her mouth agape as fear overtook her. Her voice cried out in vain, but it was just as trapped as she by ancient magics within the echoing chamber. She felt it reverberate around and within what had been left of her body that filled the space. Even that was difficult to maintain. All around her was a swirling wind of everything she was, blowing and riffling this last shade of near physical essence. The last thing she truly felt was her tiny fists pounding upon the interior of the bottle.

 

 

Becoming distraught by the futility of it all, Amanee’s eyes welled up. Mist-like streaks sparkled down her flushed cheeks only to be whisked away into the whirling turbine of her glass cage. She just barely stayed corporeal enough to hold her hands against the barrier. She sniffled, shifting to brush a hand against her cheek, only to slip through it as though she were now a ghost. Dejectedly, her shoulders hunched inward and shook with muted sobs.

Raghbat pressed his fingertip against where her little digits rested on the smooth glass. A static crackle resonated, and he became momentarily alarmed when a small spark of her pink aura burst against where he touched it. For a moment, their magics mingled as a green shimmer flickered out from his own power.

Amanee blinked in confusion and looked up at him as the whispers of magic passed between them.

Raghbat felt a cold chill run up his spine as he realized the full weight of what he’d done to her. He braced himself for her anger but instead a heavy silence filled the space.

Her eyes widened and shimmered with misty tears as their gazes held for a heartbeat. They only had time for one last breath as her tiny mouth trembled, and tears slid down and then through her fading face. Even her skin was becoming more purple by the second, as her last shreds of humanity steadily dissolved into the contained cloud of her new consciousness. With one final silent hiccup of a sob, Amanee’s form withered into the surrounding purple mist as her body faded fully into her new gaseous state. The magic of the bottle had fully claimed the memory of her former human shape.

The glow from within the bottle began to fade, grew dim, and finally winked out. Raghbat moved his hand to cradle the glass with an open palm where she had been standing only moments before. With the magic dissipating, it now looked like just another trinket. Only this time a brilliant lilac instead of the dusty green he was intimately familiar with.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Arabic Translations:
> 
> Ya kalb (Pronounced as: YA KA-LIB) - This literally means “you dog,” and is uttered to degrade someone as being filthy, dishonest, or immoral.
> 
> Ebn el metanaka - Literally translates to "son of a dirty one." Aka, Son of a bitch


	4. Master Mentor

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> So much for a three part story to keep with the theme of three I kept sneaking in. Initially a large chunk of this chapter was supposed to be in the last one, but after that final read through before posting I decided it really was more dramatic to leave off on more of a crushing cliffhanger. Then what was supposed to be an epilogue got long and what can I say? 4 part story, here we are.
> 
> Now I do have a sequel in mind but I want to take a break from these emotionally beaten up characters to work on some other projects. I'm relived to have finally finished something original, eve if it have gone quite away from me during the writing process.  
> A huge thank you again to my dear friend for putting up with my nonsense. His delightful cover image can be further appreciated on his page here:  
> http://neogeo20039905.deviantart.com/art/Worded-Wishes-4-Cover-602694199
> 
> Story on deviant art:  
> http://chaitea16.deviantart.com/art/WordedWishes4-602692106

The wish had been manipulated just enough to deliver an outcome too good to be true. Finally, after centuries of servitude and eons of waiting, Raghbat would no longer be at the whims of a mortal master. He could simply leave the bottle here and travel anywhere. Yes, that’s exactly what he should do, abandon it for the next foolish human to find.

 

There was no need to concern himself with that little mouse anymore. After all, she had tried to imprison him again with her final failed wish. _It served her right_ , he mused.

 

He truly was his own master again, and all he had to do was put down the bottle and leave. Looking down at his hand he was surprised to discover that he had even picked it back up in the first place.

 

The Djinn scowled deeply and made an effort to deposit it back on the table. But he couldn’t seem to bring himself to let it go. The still warm glass fit all too comfortably in his green grip.

 

“What, why can’t I..? Argh!” he cut himself off with a sharp snarl.

 

He was certainly justified in his time of gloating. Yet despite overcoming impossible odds, Raghbat realized he felt remorse for what had happened to that little mouse. He loathed her entire race and certainly she had foolishly toyed with a storm and, unsurprisingly, lost control of it in the process. Yet despite that the bottle was still a terrible, and cruel curse.

 

The realization slammed into Raghbat as he slapped his cheek with a free hand. “No. NO! This is all wrong! I’m free for the first time in millennia, and yet here I am, holding my former prison... I shouldn’t even care!” he raged. “T-this is foolish, it doesn’t make any sense! Why am I so concerned for this... this insignificant human’s plight?

 

Raghbat shook the bottle in his grip. “What have you done to me,” he demanded.

 

The silence was deafening. _Of course she can’t answer, the bottle would have put her in a state of dormancy this soon after imprisonment._ He growled low, still clutching the purple tinted glass in his claws. “Damn you,” he snarled as his grip tightened. “It’s not my fault! You’re the one who made foolish wishes, I merely granted them. I didn’t have a choice!”

 

Raghbat felt like he was being ripped apart by a gale of emotions twisting within his chest. “Why did you make foolish wishes?! Why didn't you wish for something practical, like crushing your foes, or, or piles of gold!? Why did you… Why?”

 

_“WHY?!” He remembered bellowing out as his scarcely tangible shoulder pressed against the magical barrier. He was still trying with every ounce of his fading power to break through the gold ringed glass that had ingurgitated him whole. Feeling his strength drain away, the furious Djinn glared out from the bottle. He could see a face on the other side peering in at him. Those thin lips curled into a smile, mocking him as he cried out in anguish and fear. It was the last time he’d seen her. The last memory he had of that cleverly deceptive human as the ancient spells pierced his mind and fogged his senses._

 

Raghbat snarled as he tore his attention back to the present. “You! You’re not getting out of this that easily!” he declared, viciously rubbing the still warm purple glass. “I will NOT be made to suffer such guilt!”

 

It was the longest few moments of Raghbat’s immortal life, fearful that the bottle’s magic would refuse him. He was just about to spew another round of profanity when the cork popped out of the glass. Sluggishly, a miniscule wisp of purple smoke with flickering pink shimmers swirled out of it to hover above the table. Given the wait, it was pathetically anticlimactic.

 

“R-R-Raghbat…” Amanee’s tiny voice whispered breathily from within the purple poof of smoke. Her nebulous essence was swirling about the tabletop like a lost tendril from a billowy cloud. “W-what’s happening? Why is everything so… so blurry?”

 

“Concentrate,” Raghbat barked. “Remember what you looked like. That memory will help shape your form.”

 

“M-my form? O-okay…” Amanee answered weakly. Her voice wavered as the colored vapor coalesced and solidified into the shrunken human woman. She staggered before him, leaning heavily on her hands and knees while completely nude.

 

“Oh, thank the Maker!” Raghbat breathed a sigh of relief, as he reached down and scooped up the diminutive woman. She fell backwards in his hand as he lifted her to his face. “I thought for a moment that the bottle wouldn’t allow me to summon you.”

 

Amanee was still disoriented from the tumultuous experience of having been siphoned into, and then so abruptly expelled back out of, an ancient artifact. Groggily, she pulled herself up into a kneeling position, mouth agape in stunned surprise. She only had a few moments to process her newly restored perspective as Raghbat’s warm breath blew over her exposed skin.

 

“Wha...what happened?” she gasped. “Was I asleep? But that would mean…” She frowned dazedly before looking down at her unclad body upon his open palm. “EEEEK!” she shrieked. All her memories of the day came crashing back. Amanee clung to the only thing her frantic mind could focus on - _Why am I tiny and naked... again!_ Quickly she folded her hands over her front to protect herself from the Djinn's giant, prying eyes.

 

“You’re welcome,” Raghbat grumbled as she glared up at him.

 

“H-h-how, how dare you!”

 

“Huh?” Raghbat blurted.

 

“How dare you!” Amanee repeated irately. “I’m naked! And, and small! Why… why am I naked and still so small?!”

 

“Well, you…” Raghbat tried to explain.

 

“And, and what the hell do you think you’re doing?!” she cried, as she rose to her feet. She shifted her hands in a awkward attempt to keep her womanly curves covered.

 

“Well, you were-”

 

“What happened to me? And why am I still so tiny!?”

 

“I-it’s the magic,” Raghbat stammered out. “When you made your last wish-”

 

“Stop staring at me!”

 

“I’m not!” Raghbat exclaimed, still staring at her. “I mean, I’m not trying to! You’re just-”

 

“You pervert!” she accused harshly. “C-clothing! I, I need clothing! RIGHT NOW!” she shrieked with a stamp of her tiny foot into the palm of his enormous hand.

 

“Calm yourself. One thing at a time,” Raghbat commanded as he waved his free hand over Amanee's tiny form. Tendrils of green, luminous ribbons flew over her chest and legs, only to promptly sputter and die.

 

Amanee gasped from the sensation, her face heating up.

 

“Uh oh…” Raghbat frowned.

 

“Uh oh? What do you mean, uh-oh?!” she demanded, still squirming from the tingling of his dissipated power. She blushed hotly while continuing to glare up at him.

 

He continued to stare down at her nude body, lost in thought. “Uh…”

 

“W-what?!” Amanee insisted.

 

“Um, I’m not sure how, though I might have a theory but... I think the bottle may have turned you into something… more than simply human…?”

 

“W-WHAT!?!”

 

“Yes, yes I’m fairly sure you’re a Djinni now. Well, at least partially. I think, hmm…” Raghbat mused while very blatantly looking over her scarcely concealed form. “It is the only explanation that makes sense. Your last wish was quite powerful, with so much raw emotion behind it and-”

 

“WHAT DO YOU MEAN I’M A DJINN?!” Amanee cried out sharply.

 

“No, no. Not A Djinn. I am a Djinn. You would be a female Djinn, a Djinni-”

 

“Kol hawa!” Amanee demanded abruptly, not wanting to hear another word. Her dark complexion paled as she took in quick, sharp breaths. “This is NOT possible! You’re impossible! I’m… I, uh...” she began chewing on her bottom lip, shoulders trembling beneath the gravity of his words as they sunk in.

 

Raghbat remained silent, watching her process this information with amused interest.

 

“I still have legs!” Amanee finally blurted out. For emphasis, she shifted on them atop the uneven surface of his open hand. “See?”

 

“Yes, and you’re using them to stand naked in my hand,” he pointed out with a wicked smirk.

 

“No, you don’t understand,” she rationalized desperately as a blush colored her cheeks. “You didn’t, but I still do. So I can’t be a Djinn-”

 

“Djinni,” Raghbat corrected again while shaking his head. He decided to try a different approach. “Little one, you were not created as I was. You always had a physical body, as a being of this earthly realm, you-”

 

“S-STOP STARING!” Amanee cut in as she clutched at her body more guardedly. “You’re still staring at me!”

  
“I am not! I mean… I, I am talking to you, so I’m looking at you, yes.” He threw his free hand up in frustration. “Hellfire and damnation, I’m not even sure what your wish has done to me, either!”

  


 

Amanee wobbled atop his hand, covering her face in a futile attempt to block out the staggering enormity of what he kept insinuating. “Just… just get me something to wear… please,” she pleaded forlornly.

 

Raghbat frowned, managing to turn his face away from her to look around the room. A thin, paper-like sheet protruded out of nearby box. Delicately, he grabbed it with clawed fingers and tore one slip free. “I am a Djinn, and I know how my magic works. But it’s reacting unexpectedly to your new form and likely the powers that come with it,” he grumbled, voice low and earnest.

 

“How?! That still doesn’t explain why you think I’m a djinni!” Amanee demanded, frustration evident in her expression.

 

“When you wished to change places, I took the implication to make myself free, like you were. That aspect of our circumstances changed places, so to speak. The counterbalance to that had to make you inhuman enough for that to work. Thus making you at least partially Djinni now. The bottle wouldn’t have been able to claim a mere human. It the only explanation that makes sense. Here,” he insisted, holding out the torn tissue before her. “Take your covering.”

 

Amanee eagerly snatched the thin scrap of paper from his giant digits. She hastily wrapped it around herself like she would a towel after a shower, tucking it just below her arm and comfortably above her bustline.

 

“I… I’m standing in a giant, green palm, wearing a tissue,” she sniffled despondently. “I-I can’t be any more than five inches tall... and I’m… I’m not even human anymore...” she hiccuped between sobs, tears slipping freely down her face. “All I wanted… all this because I wanted something to eat... I’m so damn tired of being hungry all the time.”

 

Raghbat sighed miserably as another twinge of guilt assaulted him as Amanee brought a trembling hand up to her face to start wiping at her wet cheeks. “Alright, that’s enough,” Raghbat growled through grit teeth. “There’s no need to shed tears, little one. The situation isn’t entirely hopeless, and I am indebted to you regardless of what you think of me.”

 

Her wet lashes blinked at him in confusion. “Indebted?” she said, in between steadying breaths. “But, but I already made my wishes. I’m... I’m not your master anymore.”

 

“Regardless of whether you meant to or not, I’m free because of you. This has become a matter of honor to me, so don’t get any other ideas. Besides, I think I’m now your… well...uh...”

 

Amanee hiccuped again while looking up at Raghbat imploringly through watery, brown eyes.

 

He felt the weight of her sorrow, and couldn’t bring himself to finish the speculation. It would be one more pain to add upon her when she was still reeling from the shock of her last ordeal. “Look,” he began, intending to change the subject entirely. “Let’s take care of the little things first.”

 

Amanee’s eye twitched at the thoughtless pun. But at least she was no longer crying.

 

The Djinn tried again, voice softer this time. “What I mean is, if you’re still hungry, how about I conjure something for you? I might not be able to directly affect you with my magic, but I should still be able to do this much. That is, if humans still eat food to comfort themselves, don’t they?”

  
Amanee blinked away the last of her tears. She was so emotionally drained and physically exhausted that the offered distraction to eat something was a compelling comfort. With a heartfelt sigh she nodded agreeably.

 

“Alright then,” Raghbat said, as cheerfully as he could muster. “What sort of food would you like? Just name it, I’ll make it. Roast Boar? Half a side of camel? A potato?”

 

Amanee actually managed a giggle at that.

 

Raghbat smiled, becoming endeared despite himself. “Well, that’s better. So what’ll it be?”

 

She took another moment to think over the Djinn’s offer. His sincerity felt genuine enough but she wasn’t sure how to process that. Amanee was still very cross with him, not sure if she could ever forgive the devious creature. Too much had happened between them for her to not question this new motive as well.

 

“Why,” she found herself asking. “Why are you being so kind to me now?”

 

Raghbat rubbed his chin in a thoughtful gesture. “Because you’ve gotten a taste of what that accursed bottle is like,” he motioned to the clear glass container distastefully. “Imagine living like that for an eternity. Do you think I’d wish that upon another living being? Being a slave to greedy mortals for the rest of time?”

 

Amanee scowled furiously. “But, but isn't that exactly what you twisted my third wish into? Freeing yourself and imprisoning me in your place?!”

 

“No,” Raghbat groused tiredly. “You made a hasty, poorly worded wish that was fueled by raging emotions. It went out of control, and I had very little choice but to redirect it. I simply interpreted it hastily, so it ended in my favor instead of yours.”

 

“So now you’re a thief and a liar,” she accused while crossing both arms over her tissue toweled torso. The movement accentuated her ample breasts to strain beneath the thin material.

 

Raghbat frowned to hide an appreciative leer at her new stance.

 

“Well?” Amanee pressed further.

 

He took a deep breath, held it a moment before letting it out enough to ruffle her dark, tangled hair. She was absolutely right. Even if he hadn’t meant to, that’s exactly what he’d done to her. “You are not ...incorrect,” he stalled.

 

Amanee blew a bang of dark hair out of her face. “What did you say?”

 

“I did not intend to alter your humanity, little one. We are both each equally at fault for this situation. You commanded me to change our places. Have you not yet realized that either way, the bottle would have claimed one of us as its victim? To be a slave to whoever rubs it next?”

 

Amanne felt a stab of dread. “Wait, slave?”

 

“More or less,” Raghbat confirmed darkly.

 

“After I let you out, you called me your master, but…” Amanee trailed off as a new, horrifying realization crashed through her. “But then you rubbed the bottle while I was in it,” she grimaced. “So, so does that make you my m-mast-”

 

“NO!” he forcefully interrupted.

 

Amanee flinched at Raghbat’s sudden, abrupt shout. She had nearly fallen over from the strength of it as her eyes widened in alarm.

 

Raghbat took a deep breath, pursing his lips to calm himself. He’d used that word too many times, felt too much of himself disappearing each time he uttered it, to let her use that title. Amanee’s bright, fearful eyes brought him back to the moment, allowing him to continue with more restraint this time.

 

“You will not call me that. You are NOT a slave to me. It was never my desire to enslave you, only to be free. As far as we’re concerned, you have three wishes to grant me, yes. We can talk about those over a meal. But I will not have you using a designation beyond that of a reluctant teacher to a new Djinni apprentice. In the meantime, pick a dish so I can conjure it.”

 

Amanee fell to her knees, tissue tearing slightly as her legs bent from the sudden drop. Her head was still reeling from an ordeal that just kept getting more convolutedly complex each passing moment. There was so much to consider now. Too much for her to even begin to fathom while wearing nothing but a kleenex and kneeling on a giant, green hand. So instead, she focused on the offer of food. A subject she too often forced herself to ignore.

 

“My... my mother… she used to make the most delicious lamb curry,” Amanee managed sheepishly.

 

“Show me.” Raghbat delicately placed a fingertip on her tiny forehead. “Just think about it, and I will see what I need to do.”

 

Amanee thought back to the last time her mother was well enough to cook for them. Her younger brother was living at home and they shared everything together in the warmth of family, enjoying each other’s company. The older sibling had just graduated from a local university and had not yet made plans to travel far and wide.

 

Back then, Amanee was content to stay right where she was, with much of her time studying for the local community college program. She felt needed at home, assisting around the large, shared apartment. With her mother’s ailing health, the added help was needed.

 

The extra bills were well hidden at first, but it was hard to deny something was wrong when her mother could no longer travel alone to her medical appointments. The clumps of hair left behind on her pillowcase each morning confirmed her daughter's suspicions. Those beautiful dark locks had begun to thin before ever having a chance to turn gray. One night dinner was taking longer than ever, but Amanne waited patiently till she heard her and her brother’s names called to the table. The smell of spices and savory meat alluringly filled the kitchen.

 

She felt her heart become heavy at the memory.

 

“I can work with that,” Raghbat murmured softly.

 

Amanee blinked. “Huh?” She had been so lost in the perfect moment she forgot why she recalled it in the first place.

 

“I saw more than a meal. You showed me a memory. Your family...” Raghbat trailed off quietly. He dropped his finger down from her brow to brush the side of it across her flushed cheek. He was especially careful to keep the curved claw away from her fragile face.

 

Amanee leaned back from the gesture, unsure how to interpret it.

 

The Djinn let out a sigh that felt like a warm breeze, tousling Amanee’s hair and fluttering the thin tissue covering. As he dropped his hand the pointer finger began to glow a luminescent green.

 

Raghbat’s eyes flared with a white glow as a scent distantly familiar to Amanee filled the room. In a swirl of smoke and green ribbons of light, a bowl of lamb curry materialized on the table in front of them.

 

It was exactly the same from her memory. The meat and sauce were seasoned with what smelled like finely prepared spices and herbs. Even the silverware and the bowl holding the meal were identical.

 

Only now some of the chunks of meat were larger than her head and the bowl was the size of a swimming pool.

 

“H-how… how did you,” she stuttered out. “And without a wish, I-I thought-”

 

“I’m no longer bound to the bottle, so I can use my magic as I see fit,” Raghbat explained. “Though it’s not as powerful as the bottle’s influence, it’s still quite potent and my own to control. A simple request such as this is a mere trivial matter to an all-powerful djinn such as myself.”

 

Amanee balked at his bravado before another, more simple question came to mind. “Alright but, uh...how am I supposed to eat this?”

 

“It’s very simple, you place the food in your mouth, chew, and then probably swallow,” Raghbat said, as he glared at the ornate glassware with a look of absolute boredom. “Have you forgotten how? Or has the bottle completely robbed you of what little sense you had to begin with?”

 

“Why you...” Amanee started, fuming at his unnecessarily harsh words while turning to yell at him properly. She was surprised when she was greeted by a large, teasing grin, and a spoon held up in front of her. Upon it a small portion of the giant meal had been scooped up.

 

“Until you can properly manage your size, I will be your hands as needed,” Raghbat said softly. “Though I, er… I’ve never fed someone before. Can you manage with me just holding it?”

 

She looked at him with suspicion, eyeing both the questionable smirk and the offered portion of food.

 

“I mean you no harm. Honestly,” he added with a shrug. “I do not wish for you to starve, or be miserable. So please, eat as much as you want. There is plenty for you here.”

 

Tentatively, she leaned forward, tiny tongue darting out to sample just the sauce at first. She didn’t even try to reign in the look of sheer bliss as the flavor enveloped her senses. A sweet smile broke out across her face as she swayed back and forth, unabashedly enjoying her first taste.

 

Raghbat patiently held the eating utensil where she could reach it easily, amused at her antics. Though she was now impervious to cold and heat, she still blew upon the small portion of food before daintily nibbling away. The look of absolute joy on her face as she savored her first meal as a djinni was priceless.

 

“Beguiling...” Raghbat murmured appreciatively.

 

 

“Huh?” Amanee questioned mid gulp. She looked up at him imploringly, sauce dripping down her lip and eyes shining bright. She reached up to stroke away a tear from her face.

 

Raghbat’s own eyes widened, realizing he had spoken aloud. “Erh, I meant…” he reached over for another scrap of tissue, seeing how it was perfect for her to clean her tiny face. “...it’s nothing. Please enjoy your meal. There is much work to do when you’re satiated.”

 

With scarcely a hesitation, Amanee went right back to munching away at what was left in the offered spoonful. Raghbat turned his head to offer her some form of privacy, though when he returned his gaze, a raised brow arched at him questioningly from the tiny beauty.

 

Their gazes locked, and Amanee found herself once again lost in his slanted, steel grey depths. In turn, Raghbat was simultaneously entranced by her round, soulful brown eyes. The over familiarity of the persuasive exchange brought a creeping chill to Amanee.

 

“I still don’t trust you,” she blurted out.

 

Raghbat shrugged. “I wouldn’t trust me either. It’s better that way...” He trailed off sullenly.

 

She eyed him more suspiciously this time, taking a long, slow lick of the last of the sauce still clinging to the giant spoon.

 

“It’s not poison, if you’re concerned about such things.” Raghbat chuckled ruefully.

 

“If that’s what I was worried about I wouldn’t have finished that whole portion just now, would I?” Amanee pointed out. “What did you mean, before? When you said we had much work to do?”

 

Raghbat just smiled wickedly, a fang gleaming as his eyes narrowed.

 

Amanee gulped nervously.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Arabic Translations:
> 
> Kol hawa - (كل هواء) direct English translation means to ‘eat air.’ Aka, to “Shut up.”


End file.
